Cerium‐Based Metal–Organic Frameworks with UiO Architecture for Visible Light‐Induced Aerobic Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohol

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), a new fascinating class of photocatalysts, have attracted considerable interest in the past few years. Unfortunately, the photocatalytic activities of most pristine MOFs are limited by their intrinsic drawbacks such as limited visible light absorption and poor charge separation efficiency. Herein, a series of Ce‐UiOs are constructed through metal substitution and ligand modification, and their photocatalytic properties are studied systematically. Due to the low‐lying empty 4f orbitals of Ce, the light absorption range of as‐prepared Ce‐UiO MOFs is extended to the visible light region. Moreover, their negative ligand‐to‐metal charge transfer energy (ELMCT) facilitates the separation of charge carriers, which leads to the efficient visible light oxidation of benzyl alcohol. The possible reaction mechanism is validated by electrochemical test and photoluminescence spectroscopy. This work provides an entire new set of Ce‐MOFs‐based photocatalysts for future important inorganic reactions. For the first time, the visible light photocatalytic property of Ce‐based UiO metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is studied. Compared with traditional Zr‐UiO MOFs, not only the light absorption range extends, but also the carrier separation accelerates. Significantly, a ligand‐dependent charge separation efficiency is observed and unveiled via electrochemical tests and photoluminescence spectroscopy, and the possible reaction mechanism is further proposed.